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Question 15 of 23 · Union, Territory & Citizenship
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The Citizenship Act, which lays down how Indian citizenship is acquired and lost, was passed in:

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Answer: Option A — 1955

Detailed Solution

The Citizenship Act was passed by Parliament in 1955. It provides for the acquisition and termination of Indian citizenship after the commencement of the Constitution.

Constitutional background:

  • Part II of the Constitution (Articles 5 to 11) deals with citizenship at the commencement of the Constitution in 1950.
  • Article 11 gives Parliament the power to make laws regarding the acquisition and termination of citizenship and all other matters relating to citizenship.
  • The Citizenship Act was passed under this power.

Loss of citizenship under the Act:

  • Renunciation: a citizen can voluntarily renounce Indian citizenship by making a declaration.
  • Termination: a person automatically loses Indian citizenship if he voluntarily acquires the citizenship of another country.
  • Deprivation: the Central Government can deprive a person of citizenship in certain cases, such as if citizenship was obtained by fraud, or if the person shows disloyalty to the Constitution.

Single citizenship:

  • The Constitution provides for single citizenship: there is only Indian citizenship, and no separate citizenship of states.
  • This is different from the United States, which has both federal and state citizenship.

Major amendments to the Act:

  • 1986: restricted citizenship by birth for children born in India after 1 July 1987 to cases where at least one parent is an Indian citizen.
  • 2003: further restricted citizenship by birth after 3 December 2004 to cases where one parent is a citizen and the other is not an illegal migrant; it also introduced the Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) scheme.
  • 2019: the Citizenship (Amendment) Act provided a faster path to citizenship for persecuted minorities from three neighbouring countries.

Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI):

OCI cardholders get a lifelong visa and many benefits, but they do not have voting rights or the right to hold constitutional posts.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗1950 is when the Constitution came into force.
  • ✗1962 does not match.
  • ✗1986 is the year of an important amendment.

Quick tip

Remember: Citizenship Act = 1955 (made under Article 11); amended in 1986, 2003 and 2019.

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Union, Territory & Citizenship — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Union, Territory & Citizenship, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

This topic covers Part I and Part II of the Constitution: the Union and its territory (Articles 1-4), the formation and reorganisation of states, and the provisions on citizenship (Articles 5-11), including how citizenship is acquired and lost under the Citizenship Act, 1955. Questions commonly ask which article describes India as a 'Union of States' (Article 1), how Parliament can create new states (Article 3), and the five ways of acquiring citizenship (birth, descent, registration, naturalisation and incorporation of territory). Remember that India provides for single citizenship. Practise the union, territory and citizenship questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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